Cisco to Cut 6,000 Jobs as Profits Fall

Cisco CEO John Chambers at the 2014 Consumer Electronics Show in Las VegasReuters

Silicon Valley technology giant Cisco Systems has said it will cut 8% of its global workforce amid falling profits.

The latest round of lay-offs will see the maker of networking hardware slash the jobs of nearly 6,000 employees.

Cisco's chief executive John Chambers refused to identify the areas that will suffer job cuts but admitted that examples could include sales representatives in countries suffering declining revenues, reports said.

Cisco's stock shed 1% in after-hours trading in New York to $24.92 (£14.94). The stock has gained some 13% so far this year.

Results

The technology giant, on 13 August, said net income for the fourth-quarter ended 26 July slipped to $2.25bn from $2.27bn a year ago. Revenue declined to $12.36bn from $12.42bn.

Fourth-quarter profit slipped 1% on revenue that was down 0.5%.

Chambers said in a statement accompanying the results: "We are executing well in a tough environment and delivered our best non-GAAP earnings per share quarter in our history. I'm pleased with how we are transforming our company over the past several years and that journey continues.

"We are focused on growth, innovation and talent, especially in the areas of security, data centre, software, cloud and internet of everything. Our strategy is sound, our financials are strong, and our market leadership is secure. We have the team in place to deliver and are uniquely positioned to help our customers solve their biggest business problems."

In August 2013, Cisco announced that it would cut 4,000 positions, while in 2011 the firm said it planned to slash more than 11,000 jobs.